Just Breathe
by Huntress of Sacred Dreams
Summary: We all have our own takes on death. We all think we know whats going to happen after we die. But do we really know what the afterlife is like? When one cat is infected with a deadly disease another gives up his life in order to save hers. But what he finds after is like nothing he ever imagined... [For LawlClans Monthly Writing Challenge]


**This is my entry for LawlClas monthly writing challenge! The prompt was; "The afterlife was not what the protagonist expected"**

**Enjoy!**

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_Sometimes all we need to do is breathe..._

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"Wake up! Please wake up!" a voice sobbed.

_Why are you screaming? I'm fine._

"Please! Don't leave me! I need you. Please…Wake up."

To prove to the screaming stranger that I was fine I cracked open my eyelids, only to be greeted by searing sun. My head felt like it was on fire as did my chest. Something cold and sticky matted my pelt, seeping through my fur and freezing my skin. Despite the coldness on my skin my body still burnt like a blazing bushfire. It confused me. Twisting my head I saw who I assumed was the owner of the voice. "Hello?" I croaked then gasped at how hoarse my voice sounded.

The stranger pricked her ears at my voice. "You're awake! Oh I was so worri-" She stopped midway through her sentence. I followed her fearful gaze over to a large boulder. Sitting upon that boulder was a tall jet black tom, tail curled around his paws. His sharp gaze rested on me.

"Why are _you _still alive," he snarled.

I met his gaze evenly despite my burning body. "Perhaps there is a god," I rasped. He narrowed his eyes before rising to his feet and padding over to me.

"Don't touch him!" the strange she-cat cried.

The tom snarled at her, "Shut your mouth Kira." _Kira…The name sounds familiar but I just can't put a claw on it. _"He should have died moons ago. I am here to ensure that this time he does die."

"What if I don't want to do?" I piped up. I was sick of lying on the ground looking weak with blood spattered over my pelt.

He laughed. A deep, mocking laugh. "I'm afraid you don't have a choice Storm."

"Everyone has a choice!" I yowled back wincing as I yowled. It hurt to make even the slightest of movement, yet alone yowl at the top of my lungs.

Kira stalked closer, her eyes aflame with anger. "He has done nothing wrong Midnight," she protested. Midnight turned on her unsheathing his claws with a snarl.

"You know what he did! That kit needed to die and he stopped it!" Midnight screeched. Memories suddenly came flooding back. I had saved that kit. I remembered now.

_Wind howled overhead as the storm raged on. Thunder and lightning melted together into a frightening symphony. Glowing eyes glittered in the darkness, watching the storm with fearful curiosity. _

_"__Storm," a soft voice whispered. "I'm scared."_

_"__It's okay. The storm will pass soon, Ice," Storm soothed. His eyes remained on the horizon, watching the storm as it thundered on. In a way it reminded him of his mother, for a storm is what he was named for. Ice huddled in closer to Storm nestling into his fur. He felt sorry for the tiny kit. She was so young yet she had faced things some old cats had never had to deal with. She had lost both her parents when a group of rogues had attacked them. Storm had saved her life by killing one of the rogues. _

_He sighed and closed his eyes only to be awoken by Ice moments later. "Storm? Where are we going?" she asked. _

_"__Far away from here Ice. Maybe we'll go to the ocean," Storm replied, mulling over the ideas of where two loners could flee. The possibilities were endless. _

_Twigs cracked nearby making Ice jump and bury herself further into Storm's thick pelt. She still hadn't gotten over the attack and Storm feared that she never would. "It was only a few twigs Ice. Twigs can't hurt you." _

_"__But the things that make the twigs snap can!" Ice retorted. Storm was impressed by her logic, he hadn't thought of that. _

_"__Well, I won't let those creatures hurt you," Storm promised licking her ear. _

_Ice purred quietly and lay on the ground, tucking her nose under her tail. "Goodnight Storm," she yawned. Storm pulled his gaze away from the horizon to look down at the tiny white kit. Sadness tugged at his heart, the little kit had no idea what illness she carried. _

_He had watched her closely during the few days they had been with each other. And sure enough all the symptoms were there. Coughing, loss of fur, gradual blindness and nerve loss. All of these symptoms combined gave the victim a disease feared by all cats. _

_Frost Shiver. _

_As his mind wandered all over the place Storm fell asleep, his head resting over Ice as if to protect her from the nightmares he knew she would have. _

_That morning the sun rose over a different landscape. The storm had raged on all night, getting steadily stronger as it blew out to sea. Trees lay on their sides, roots sticking up in the air like the tangled legs of a spider. Puddles of water littered the ground, dark with mud and covered with torn leaves. _

_Storm woke up to a sight of destruction. His eyes widened slightly and then returned to normal. When the gods decided to get angry they left nothing standing. It was nothing to worry about. He and Ice were still alive. That was all that mattered. He looked down at Ice and gasped. More of her fur had fallen out during the night and more of her skin was showing. _

_Poor Ice really was ill. And Storm knew he had to get her far away from any other cat. Frost Shiver was highly contagious, meaning that by the time he got Ice to safety, he would be burden to the illness as well. "May the gods show mercy on me," he muttered. _

_"__Hmm? Did you say something?" Ice murmured sleepily. Storm jumped slightly at her voice. _

_"__No. You ready to move on?" Storm asked quickly. Staying in one place too long meant they ran the risk of being found by the rogues. _

_Ice nodded and clambered to her paws. "Where are we travelling to today" she asked. _

_"__Wherever our paws take us," Storm replied stretching his legs. They moved away from the bramble thicket that had given them shelter. Silence filled the forest giving it an eerie feeling. Sunlight filtered through the thick canopy barely reaching the ground below. _

_Storm felt the fur on his neck rise as if someone was watching him. Every few heartbeats he would swiftly look behind him in the hope that he would catch whoever was stalking them. His instincts told him something bad was going to happen. He stiffened as a shadow moved in the corner of his eye. "Ice," he warned. "Get behind me." _

_But it was all too late. _

_Cats leapt from the surrounding undergrowth, claws unsheathed and eyes aflame. Storm recognised the leader, a tall jet black tom with a stare that could freeze you. He knew why they were here; Ice was a danger to every cat within the forest, perhaps the world. And that kind of danger needed to be destroyed. "Give us the kit, Storm and you will walk away with your life," the tom snarled. _

_"__No," Storm replied firmly. "I would rather die than see her slain by your claws!" _

_The tom shrugged, "That can be arranged." Then he pounced. He smashed into Storm hard enough to send him staggering backwards. All the fighting instincts kicked into gear inside Storm's head and he ducked under the toms lashing claws, sliding under his belly and slicing at his skin. The tom howled in pain but refused to give up. He spun around, kicked at Storm and then bit down on the back of Storm's neck, shaking him like a mouse. _

_Storm knew there was no way he could possibly win against all these cats. His eyes found Ice backed into a corner by two scrawny rogues. Anger bubbled under his skin and he threw the tom off, racing over to Ice. "Leave her alone!" he screeched tearing viciously at the first rogue he came across. The other took one look at the bulky blue tom and fled. Storm's teeth found the rogue's neck and tore at it. Blood spilled into his mouth leaving a foul salty after taste. _

_Ice squeaked in fear as more rogues slipped from the bushes. Storm growled in anger. This was no time to fight an army of worthless rogues. Instead he scooped Ice up in his jaws and raced away from the rogues knowing that he didn't have much time to hide Ice before they caught up. _

_As he ran his eyes searched for a place he could hide Ice until she could escape. Finally, after what seemed like a life time, he found the perfect place. An abandoned fox den. He quickly checked that the den was indeed abandoned before placing Ice into it. "Quick," he whispered, "Follow the tunnel and hide at the very back. Don't come out until it's safe!" _

_"__You'll be back? Right?" Ice whimpered. _

_Storm faltered before answering. "Of course," he lied. But inside he knew that this was where they would part ways. Never again would he see little sick Ice again. Ice nodded and slipped down the tunnel, the darkness swallowing her frail frame. _

_As soon as Storm was certain Ice was well hidden he turned away from the fox den and raced towards the rogues. Their angry cries reached his ears before he saw them. "Don't just stand there! Find them!" _

_Storm crashed through the undergrowth and came face to face with the black tom. "Ah. What do we have here?" he cooed. _

_"__You will never find her," Storm snarled raising his hackles._

_The tom narrowed his eyes. "I know that you know the disease she carries. And because of that disease she must be killed!" _

_"__She will live! And she will learn that she must stay away from any other cat!" Storm yelled. The tom unsheathed his claws and pounced, ripping and tearing away at Storm's wispy blue fur. Storm retaliated by slashing at the toms face, aiming for his icy eyes. _

_The two cats rolled around the forest floor, blood splattering the leaves. Rogues peered from the shadows watching the two toms tear each other apart._

_And then the tables turned. _

_The black tom pressed Storm against the ground using his bulk to keep him pressed down. "Prepare to meet the gods," he hissed. His fangs met Storm's neck and tore out his throat. And then he left, leaving Storm bleeding to death on the forest floor. _

_As blood pooled around his neck Storm began to wonder if saving Ice was really worth it. Blackness encroached on his vision and the last thing Storm thought he would see was four brown paws. _

_"__Just breathe." _

A rough paw shook me awake, awakening me from my bitter memories. "What?" I snapped.

"I asked you if you think Ice is still alive." Midnight snarled.

My mouth ran dry. Inside I hoped that she was but I was no longer sure. "I hope she is," I replied slowly.

A thin, malice coated smile spread across Midnight's face and my heart plummeted. "Ice was dragged from her fox den and killed," he purred.

"Then there is no longer any need for me to live," I murmured sadly. All my life I had followed Ice around, making sure that she lived and when her parents died I was there to look after her. And I had failed. Ice was dead.

"Storm, no!" Kira cried rushing forwards and placing her tail over me.

I shrugged it off angrily, "I don't even know you!" Kira went to say something but instead closed her mouth and walked away not looking back once.

"You wish to die?" Midnight asked padding forward a few steps. I simply nodded. There were no words left to describe the way I felt. "Then so be it." His claws dug into the wound on my throat, spreading more fire throughout my body. But I didn't fight it. Darkness took over my vision as I fell from consciousness and into what my mother had described as death.

***~*~*X*~*~***

Sunlight filtered through my eyelids, summoning me from my sleep of death. As I opened my eyes I was greeted by a sight I thought I would never see again. Cats. Numerous amounts of cats hunting, basking in the sun and speaking with each other.

"W-where am I? Am I not dead?" I asked. Confusion took over my mind as I tried to process what might have happened.

"There is no need to fear us," a voice soothed. "None of the cats here will hurt you."

I turned my head gently to stare at a small tabby she-cat. "Where am I?"

"You are in StarClan. And yes, you are dead," she explained.

"StarClan? Are you gods?" I asked again.

The she-cat laughed. But it was a happy laugh. "No. We are the spirits of dead Clan cats. You are the first non Clan cat we have had join us in a long time."

"What did I do to deserve a place among you?" I was dead. It was a strange feeling but it was nothing like I had expected. My eyes stared at the she-cat. Stars glimmered in her fur which I found extremely strange. Perhaps my mother had been wrong about death.

"You were willing to give up your own life in order to save Ice and every cat within that forest," she purred. "That kind of nobility is hard to come by. And StarClan appreciates that. Walk with me." I nodded and pulled myself to my paws and followed the strange she-cat through the even stranger world of death.

The grass beneath my paws was soft and springy. Even the air tasted sweeter. While I was observing the beautiful surroundings I had failed to notice a small shape approach. "Storm, there's someone here to see you," the she-cat murmured.

I turned my head to stare at the small shape.

"Ice!"


End file.
